1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the creation of books and stories using texts and graphics. The present invention relates more specifically to methods for creating a customized children's storybook with fingerprint art using fingerprint-ready image templates.
2. Description of the Related Art
Without limiting the scope of the invention which is determined solely by the claims, this background information is provided in the context of a specific problem to which the invention in one of its aspects was directed: facilitating the creation of customized children's storybooks using the child's own words and fingerprint art.
Fingerprint art is a popular arts and crafts activity for children. The child places a fingerprint on a piece of paper or other material, and then the child or someone else draws a picture that includes the fingerprint—typically the fingerprint is the body of a figure that is completed with hair, facial features, arms and legs, clothing, etc.
The present application utilizes in part certain techniques disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No.: US 2004/0045461 A1; Published Mar. 11, 2004; Entitled: Fingerprint Art Using Fingerprint-Ready Image Templates, the full disclosure of which is incorporated in its entirety herein by reference.
A problem with current approaches to fingerprint art is the artistic effort needed to complete the image or scene that includes the fingerprint. On occasion, the child or family would prefer to have a fingerprint image or scene that is beyond the current artistic capabilities of the child, such as to illustrate to the child various techniques that can be used by the child to create fingerprint art.